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Almost Christmas (film)
| music = John Paesano | cinematography = Larry Blanford | editing = Troy Takaki | distributor = Universal Pictures | released = | runtime = 111 minutes | country = United States | language = English | budget = $17 million | gross = $42.6 million | producers = | production companies = }} Almost Christmas is a 2016 American Christmas comedy-drama film written and directed by David E. Talbert and starring Kimberly Elise, Mo'Nique, Nicole Ari Parker, Gabrielle Union, Keri Hilson, Jessie Usher, Danny Glover, Omar Epps, John Michael Higgins, D.C. Young Fly, Romany Malco, David E. Talbert, and Donnie Simpson. The film follows a dysfunctional family that comes together for the holidays for the first time since their mother's death. Principal photography began on November 2, 2015 in Covington, Georgia. The film premiered in Los Angeles on November 3, 2016 and was released in the United States on November 11, 2016 by Universal Pictures. It received mixed reviews and grossed $42 million. Plot Radio DJ (voiced by Donnie Simpson).Walter Meyers (Danny Glover) is a retired automotive engineer who lost his wife, Grace (Rachel Kylian) one year earlier. Now that the holiday season is here, he invites his four grown children and the rest of the family to his house for a traditional celebration. Walter knows that if his daughters Cheryl (Kimberly Elise) and Rachel (Gabrielle Union) and sons Christian (Romany Malco) and Evan (Jessie Usher) can spend five days together under the same roof, it will truly be a Christmas miracle. As his children arrive, Walter realizes a perfect Christmas without his wife is easier said than done. Cheryl, a doctor and the eldest child, arrives for the holidays with her goofy husband Lonnie (J.B. Smoove), a previously famous basketball player who develops a mutual interest in a young grocery store worker (Keri Hilson) shortly after arriving in town. His eldest son and second born, Christian, struggles with balancing his campaign to become a congressman and his desire to spend time with his family. Christian invites his campaign manager along, so they can get more work done. Meanwhile, Rachel, his youngest daughter and third born, struggles to financially support herself and her daughter due to her recent divorce and studying to become a lawyer. Lastly, Evan ( Jessie Usher) is a successful football player recovering from a shoulder injury, but when his coach tells him his arm is completely healed, Evan struggles to give up the pain medication. Malachi's Mom (voiced by David E. Talbert). Cast * Danny Glover as Walter Meyers * Rachel Kylian as Grace Meyers * Kimberly Elise as Dr. Cheryl Meyers, DDS, the eldest daughter * Romany Malco as Christian Meyers * Gabrielle Union as Rachel Meyers * Jessie Usher as Evan Meyers * Mo'Nique as Aunt May * J. B. Smoove as Lonnie Maclay * Nicole Ari Parker as Sonya Meyers * Omar Epps as Malakai * Nadej K. Bailey as Niya * John Michael Higgins as Andy Brooks * DC Young Fly as Eric * Keri Hilson as Jasmine * Monica Brown as Waitress * Gregory Alan Williams as Pastor Browning * Gladys Knight as Dorothy, Shelter Director * Tara Jones as Lucy * Jeff Rose as Brian * Ric Reitz as Coach Packer *Marley Taylor as Dee Meyers * David E. Talbert as Malaci's Mom (voice) * Donnie Simpson as Radio DJ (voice) * Lyn Talbert as Young Grace (voice) Production On April 27, 2015, it was announced that Universal Pictures had bought the comedy script A Meyers Thanksgiving from David E. Talbert, who would also direct the film, with Will Packer producing through Will Packer Productions. The film was retitled A Meyers Christmas, setting around the Christmas holidays. In April 2016, Universal Pictures announced another title change for the film, which will now be called Almost Christmas. Casting for the film was done in late 2015, in Atlanta, Georgia. Release Universal scheduled the film for an November 11, 2016 release. A trailer for the film was released April 14, 2016. Box office Almost Christmas was released alongside Arrival and Shut In, and was expected to gross around $15 million from 2,376 theaters in its opening weekend. The film made $507,000 from Thursday night previews at 1,885 theaters and $5.9 million on its first day. It went on to gross $15.6 million, finishing fourth at the box office. Critical response On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 51% based on 59 reviews, with an average rating of 5.3/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "While far from the worst holiday dramedy audiences could hope for, Almost Christmas isn't distinctive enough to prompt a visit to the theater – or annual yuletide viewings." On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating, the film has a weighted average score of 55 out of 100, based on 27 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale. Accolades For her performance, Mo' Nique was nominated for the Image Award for Best Supporting Actress at the 2017 Image Awards, which went to Viola Davis for Fences. References External links * Official website * * Category:2016 films Category:2010s comedy-drama films Category:American films Category:American Christmas films Category:American comedy-drama films Category:English-language films Category:Films about Christianity Category:Films about dysfunctional families Category:Films directed by David E. Talbert Category:Films produced by Will Packer Category:Films set in Atlanta Category:Films shot in Atlanta Category:Universal Pictures films Category:Will Packer Productions films Category:Perfect World Pictures films Category:African-American films Category:Film scores by John Paesano